Bertie, A True Love Story! - Bertie the Guinea...
2
B ertie guinea pig was a very special squeaker. He was such a fun-lov- ing and friendly little fellow that when I started writing stories for my growing tod- dler, he was the piggy I had in my mind. My daughter could literally squeak before she could talk and loved looking at guinea pig pic- tures as a baby, but guinea pig picture books were hard to find! I was very frustrated by the lack of toddler tales out there featuring our favourite pets, so I started to write my own. Becky’s now 3 and loves the squeak- ing books on her Mummy’s phone! The tales draw on the antics of all my piggies, past and present, but Bertie and his friend Jenny are the key characters. They were real- life best friends and I was thrilled to be able to reunite them. Theirs is a story of true love that begins a long time ago… My passion for piggies began when I was a little girl. For quite a long time I looked after the guinea pigs from my Dad’s school during the holidays. Eventually, when they were satisfied I would care properly for it, my par- ents allowed me to keep one of my own. I was 11 years old and thrilled to bits! Bubbles taught me such a lot about these adorable little pets; the lovely noises they make; the personalities they exert and the things that make them An Amazing Story of True Piggy Love! By Helen J Aitken Bertie, A True Love Story! at all. Bubbles had been my friend and there was a huge hole in my heart. When I went off to university and into adult life, I always missed the comfort of a little furry friend. The feel and smell of a warm guinea pig chuntering under your chin is so comforting! I knew I’d have more guinea pigs one day. I was 23 before the furry ones came back into my life but I’ve never been without them since! My husband bought me two beautiful girl guinea pigs just before he asked me to marry him - he certainly knew the way to my heart! Jenny and Jemima became the first of our many guinea pig ‘babies’ and utterly pam- pered as house pets. When Jenny was left alone sudden- ly after her sister died at the young age of 3 we were all devastated, but poor Jenny was lost. I remember the house was incredibly quiet… Jemima had been the squeaker, Jenny never man- aged to squeak! She would try, her mouth would open and her little chest filled up but only a whisper came out. When Jemima died, Jenny was lonely and even constant cuddles couldn’t cheer her up. Bertie came to the rescue and it happened quite by accident. Our friend was having some damp proofing work done on her house and Bertie needed somewhere to stay while the builders moved in and the floors came up. Her son couldn’t take him at his student flat so she asked if he could lodge with us for a while. pop-corn with happiness! He wasn’t the friendliest furry with everyone else but Bubbles would literally follow me everywhere, around the house and around the garden; a real free-ranger. He died when I was 17 and I was utterly heartbroken. None of my friends could understand my grief. I can’t remember how many times I heard ‘it’s only a guinea pig…’ and of course that didn’t help The author of a brand new collection of guinea pig tales tells us about the squeaky love story that inspired the books…. Guinea Pig Magazine B ertie guinea pig was a very special squeaker. He was such a fun-lov- ing and friendly little fellow that when I started writing stories for my growing tod- dler, he was the piggy I had in my mind. My daughter could literally squeak before she could talk and loved looking at guinea pig pic- tures as a baby, but guinea pig picture books were hard to find! I was very frustrated by the lack of toddler tales out there featuring our favourite pets, so I started to write my own. Becky’s now 3 and loves the squeak- ing books on her Mummy’s phone! The tales draw on the antics of all my piggies, past and present, but Bertie and his friend Jenny are the key characters. They were real- life best friends and I was thrilled to be able to reunite them. Theirs is a story of true love that begins a long time ago… My passion for piggies began when I was a little girl. For quite a long time I looked after the guinea pigs from my Dad’s school during the holidays. Eventually, when they were satisfied I would care properly for it, my par- ents allowed me to keep one of my own. I was 11 years old and thrilled to bits! Bubbles taught me such a lot about these adorable little pets; the lovely noises they make; the personalities they exert and the things that make them An Amazing Story of True Piggy Love! By Helen J Aitken Bertie, A True Love Story! Helen (aged 11) with Bubbles at all. Bubbles had been my friend and there was a huge hole in my heart. When I went off to university and into adult life, I always missed the comfort of a little furry friend. The feel and smell of a warm guinea pig chuntering under your chin is so comforting! I knew I’d have more guinea pigs one day. I was 23 before the furry ones came back into my life but I’ve never been without them since! My husband bought me two beautiful girl guinea pigs just before he asked me to marry him - he certainly knew the way to my heart! Jenny and Jemima became the first of our many guinea pig ‘babies’ and utterly pam- pered as house pets. When Jenny was left alone sudden- ly after her sister died at the young age of 3 we were all devastated, but poor Jenny was lost. I remember the house was incredibly quiet… Jemima had been the squeaker, Jenny never man- aged to squeak! She would try, her mouth would open and her little chest filled up but only a whisper came out. When Jemima died, Jenny was lonely and even constant cuddles couldn’t cheer her up. Bertie came to the rescue and it happened quite by accident. Our friend was having some damp proofing work done on her house and Bertie needed somewhere to stay while the builders moved in and the floors came up. Her son couldn’t take him at his student flat so she asked if he could lodge with us for a while. pop-corn with happiness! He wasn’t the friendliest furry with everyone else but Bubbles would literally follow me everywhere, around the house and around the garden; a real free-ranger. He died when I was 17 and I was utterly heartbroken. None of my friends could understand my grief. I can’t remember how many times I heard ‘it’s only a guinea pig…’ and of course that didn’t help The author of a brand new collection of guinea pig tales tells us about the squeaky love story that inspired the books…. 10 As soon as Bertie realised we had a girl guinea pig in the house he made himself right at home… Our friend always commented that he didn’t say much, but he certainly found his voice when in the company of our Jenny! He adored her and although we weren’t able to put them in together (Jenny was too old to risk babies sadly), he used to visit her everyday and chat through the bars of her house, rubbing noses. When it was time for Bertie to leave we knew we would all miss him terribly. When our friend called to pick him up he was most unhappy about being put into his travel hutch! The moment he left the house, Jenny literally went downhill. She wouldn’t eat and fluffed herself up and put her head down… We rang our friend and she told us Bertie had ‘drooped’ too - they obviously didn’t want to be apart. So she made a mercy dash back to our cottage and the two were reunited. Bertie joined the family and never looked back, but always gave our friend a jolly squeak when she came to visit! Bertie and Jenny lived happily alongside each other while our brood slowly grew. Then one day we discovered he had a tumour. It was hidden behind a rather large and weepy cyst on his teat. The vet found it during an operation to remove the cyst. It was the size of a golf ball. It hadn’t spread, but poor little Bertie had a rough time; he nearly didn’t make it after the operation. I remember the vet ringing me say he wasn’t coming round very well after the anaesthetic. I asked if I could come in and sit with him. They let me go in after hours and I sat in front of the cage they’d put him in and sent him some healing (another interest of mine) and stroked him gently. He was on a warm recovery mat and very floppy. He didn’t move at all but he started to talk to me as if he was telling me all about it. I knew then he’d be okay. He made it home and despite some regular visits to the vets and our local rodentolo- gist, he lived to be quite an old man. Jenny was not alone after Bertie died, we had quite Bertie and Jenny lived happily alongside each other As soon as Bertie realised we had a girl guinea pig in the house he made himself right at home… Our friend always commented that he didn’t say much, but he certainly found his voice when in the company of our Jenny! He adored her and although we weren’t able to put them in together (Jenny was too old to risk babies sadly), he used to visit her everyday and chat through the bars of her house, rubbing noses. When it was time for Bertie to leave we knew we would all miss him terribly. When our friend called to pick him up he was most unhappy about being put into his travel hutch! The moment he left the house, Jenny literally went downhill. She wouldn’t eat and fluffed herself up and put her head down… We rang our friend and she told us Bertie had ‘drooped’ too - they obviously didn’t want to be apart. So she made a mercy dash back to our cottage and the two were reunited. Bertie joined the family and never looked back, but always gave our friend a jolly squeak when she came to visit! Bertie and Jenny lived happily alongside each other while our brood slowly grew. Then one day we discovered he had a tumour. It was hidden behind a rather large and weepy cyst on his teat. The vet found it during an operation to remove the cyst. It was the size of a golf ball. It hadn’t spread, but poor little Bertie had a rough time; he nearly didn’t make it after the operation. I remember the vet ringing me say he wasn’t coming round very well after the anaesthetic. I asked if I could come in and sit with him. They let me go in after hours and I sat in front of the cage they’d put him in and sent him some healing (another interest of mine) and stroked him gently. He was on a warm recovery mat and very floppy. He didn’t move at all but he started to talk to me as if he was telling me all about it. I knew then he’d be okay. He made it home and despite some regular visits to the vets and our local rodentolo- gist, he lived to be quite an old man. Jenny was not alone after Bertie died, we had quite Bertie used to visit Jenny everyday and chat through the bars of her house, rubbing noses. www.guineapigmagazine.com 11
Transcript of Bertie, A True Love Story! - Bertie the Guinea...
Bertie guinea pig was a very special squeaker. He was such a fun-lov-
ing and friendly little fellow that when I started writing stories for my growing tod-dler, he was the piggy I had in my mind. My daughter could literally squeak before she could talk and loved looking at guinea pig pic-tures as a baby, but guinea pig picture books were hard to find! I was very frustrated by the lack of toddler tales out there featuring our favourite pets, so I started to write my own. Becky’s now 3 and loves the squeak-ing books on her Mummy’s phone! The tales draw on the antics of all my piggies, past and present, but Bertie and his friend Jenny are the key characters. They were real-life best friends and I was thrilled to be able to reunite them. Theirs is a story of true love that begins a long time ago…
My passion for piggies began when I was a little girl. For quite a long time I looked after the guinea pigs from my Dad’s school during the holidays. Eventually, when they were satisfied I would care properly for it, my par-ents allowed me to keep one of my own. I was 11 years old and thrilled to bits! Bubbles taught me such a lot about these adorable little pets; the lovely noises they make; the personalities they exert and the things that make them
An Amazing Story of True Piggy Love!
By Helen J Aitken
Bertie, A True Love Story!
Helen (aged 11) with Bubbles
at all. Bubbles had been my friend and there was a huge hole in my heart.
When I went off to university and into adult life, I always missed the comfort of a little furry friend. The feel and smell of a warm guinea pig chuntering under your chin is so comforting! I knew I’d have more guinea pigs one day. I was 23 before the furry ones came back into my life but I’ve never been without
them since!My husband bought me two beautiful girl guinea pigs just before he asked me to marry him - he certainly knew the way to my heart! Jenny and Jemima became the first of our many guinea pig ‘babies’ and utterly pam-pered as house pets. When Jenny was left alone sudden-ly after her sister died at the young age of 3 we were all devastated, but poor Jenny was lost. I remember the house was incredibly quiet… Jemima had been the squeaker, Jenny never man-aged to squeak! She would try, her mouth would open and her little chest filled up but only a whisper came out. When Jemima died, Jenny was lonely and even constant cuddles couldn’t cheer her up. Bertie came to the rescue and it happened quite by accident.
Our friend was having some damp proofing work done on her house and Bertie needed somewhere to stay while the builders moved in and the floors came up. Her son couldn’t take him at his student flat so she asked if he could lodge with us for a while.
pop-corn with happiness! He wasn’t the friendliest furry with everyone else but Bubbles would literally follow me everywhere, around the house and around the garden; a real free-ranger.
He died when I was 17 and I was utterly heartbroken. None of my friends could understand my grief. I can’t remember how many times I heard ‘it’s only a guinea pig…’ and of course that didn’t help
The author of a brand new collection of guinea pig tales tells us about the squeaky love story that inspired the books….
Guinea Pig Magazine
Bertie guinea pig was a very special squeaker. He was such a fun-lov-
ing and friendly little fellow that when I started writing stories for my growing tod-dler, he was the piggy I had in my mind. My daughter could literally squeak before she could talk and loved looking at guinea pig pic-tures as a baby, but guinea pig picture books were hard to find! I was very frustrated by the lack of toddler tales out there featuring our favourite pets, so I started to write my own. Becky’s now 3 and loves the squeak-ing books on her Mummy’s phone! The tales draw on the antics of all my piggies, past and present, but Bertie and his friend Jenny are the key characters. They were real-life best friends and I was thrilled to be able to reunite them. Theirs is a story of true love that begins a long time ago…
My passion for piggies began when I was a little girl. For quite a long time I looked after the guinea pigs from my Dad’s school during the holidays. Eventually, when they were satisfied I would care properly for it, my par-ents allowed me to keep one of my own. I was 11 years old and thrilled to bits! Bubbles taught me such a lot about these adorable little pets; the lovely noises they make; the personalities they exert and the things that make them
An Amazing Story of True Piggy Love!
By Helen J Aitken
Bertie, A True Love Story!
Helen (aged 11) with Bubbles
at all. Bubbles had been my friend and there was a huge hole in my heart.
When I went off to university and into adult life, I always missed the comfort of a little furry friend. The feel and smell of a warm guinea pig chuntering under your chin is so comforting! I knew I’d have more guinea pigs one day. I was 23 before the furry ones came back into my life but I’ve never been without
them since!My husband bought me two beautiful girl guinea pigs just before he asked me to marry him - he certainly knew the way to my heart! Jenny and Jemima became the first of our many guinea pig ‘babies’ and utterly pam-pered as house pets. When Jenny was left alone sudden-ly after her sister died at the young age of 3 we were all devastated, but poor Jenny was lost. I remember the house was incredibly quiet… Jemima had been the squeaker, Jenny never man-aged to squeak! She would try, her mouth would open and her little chest filled up but only a whisper came out. When Jemima died, Jenny was lonely and even constant cuddles couldn’t cheer her up. Bertie came to the rescue and it happened quite by accident.
Our friend was having some damp proofing work done on her house and Bertie needed somewhere to stay while the builders moved in and the floors came up. Her son couldn’t take him at his student flat so she asked if he could lodge with us for a while.
pop-corn with happiness! He wasn’t the friendliest furry with everyone else but Bubbles would literally follow me everywhere, around the house and around the garden; a real free-ranger.
He died when I was 17 and I was utterly heartbroken. None of my friends could understand my grief. I can’t remember how many times I heard ‘it’s only a guinea pig…’ and of course that didn’t help
The author of a brand new collection of guinea pig tales tells us about the squeaky love story that inspired the books….
10
Bertie and Jenny lived happily alongside each other
As soon as Bertie realised we had a girl guinea pig in the house he made himself right at home… Our friend always commented that he didn’t say much, but he certainly found his voice when in the company of our Jenny! He adored her and although we weren’t able to put them in together (Jenny was too old to risk babies sadly), he used to visit her everyday and chat through the bars of her house, rubbing noses. When it was time for Bertie to leave we knew we would all miss him terribly. When our friend called to pick him up he was most unhappy about being put into his travel hutch! The moment he left the house, Jenny literally went downhill. She wouldn’t eat and fluffed herself up and put her head down… We rang our friend and she told us Bertie had ‘drooped’ too - they obviously didn’t want to be apart. So she made a mercy dash back to our cottage and the two were reunited. Bertie joined the family and never looked back, but always gave our friend a jolly squeak when she came to visit! Bertie and Jenny lived
happily alongside each other while our brood slowly grew. Then one day we discovered he had a tumour. It was hidden behind a rather large and weepy cyst on his teat. The vet found it during an operation to remove the cyst. It was the size of a golf ball. It hadn’t spread, but poor little Bertie had a rough time; he nearly didn’t make it after the operation. I remember the vet ringing me say he wasn’t coming round very well after the anaesthetic. I asked if I could come in and sit with him. They let me go in after hours and I sat in front of the cage they’d put him in and sent him some healing (another interest of mine) and stroked him gently. He was on a warm recovery mat and very floppy. He didn’t move at all but he started to talk to me as if he was telling me all about it. I knew then he’d be okay. He made it home and despite some regular visits to the vets and our local rodentolo-gist, he lived to be quite an old man.
Jenny was not alone after Bertie died, we had quite
Bertie used to visit Jenny everyday and chat through the bars of her house, rubbing noses.
Bertie and Jenny lived happily alongside each other
As soon as Bertie realised we had a girl guinea pig in the house he made himself right at home… Our friend always commented that he didn’t say much, but he certainly found his voice when in the company of our Jenny! He adored her and although we weren’t able to put them in together (Jenny was too old to risk babies sadly), he used to visit her everyday and chat through the bars of her house, rubbing noses. When it was time for Bertie to leave we knew we would all miss him terribly. When our friend called to pick him up he was most unhappy about being put into his travel hutch! The moment he left the house, Jenny literally went downhill. She wouldn’t eat and fluffed herself up and put her head down… We rang our friend and she told us Bertie had ‘drooped’ too - they obviously didn’t want to be apart. So she made a mercy dash back to our cottage and the two were reunited. Bertie joined the family and never looked back, but always gave our friend a jolly squeak when she came to visit! Bertie and Jenny lived
happily alongside each other while our brood slowly grew. Then one day we discovered he had a tumour. It was hidden behind a rather large and weepy cyst on his teat. The vet found it during an operation to remove the cyst. It was the size of a golf ball. It hadn’t spread, but poor little Bertie had a rough time; he nearly didn’t make it after the operation. I remember the vet ringing me say he wasn’t coming round very well after the anaesthetic. I asked if I could come in and sit with him. They let me go in after hours and I sat in front of the cage they’d put him in and sent him some healing (another interest of mine) and stroked him gently. He was on a warm recovery mat and very floppy. He didn’t move at all but he started to talk to me as if he was telling me all about it. I knew then he’d be okay. He made it home and despite some regular visits to the vets and our local rodentolo-gist, he lived to be quite an old man.
Jenny was not alone after Bertie died, we had quite
Bertie used to visit Jenny everyday and chat through the bars of her house, rubbing noses.
www.guineapigmagazine.com 11
ExoticDirect is a trading style of Brooks Braithwaite (Sussex) Ltd. Brooks Braithwaite (Sussex) Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) Number 304389. 4 Bridge Road Business Park, Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH16 1TX
Guinea Pig Insurance
0800 626012
• £2,000veterinaryfeecoverperpolicyperiod
More than one guinea pig?
• £2,000veterinaryfeecoverperpet,perpolicyperiod
InterestfreeDirectDebitpaymentoption
For a FREE no obligation quote,get in touch!
www.exoticdirect.co.uk
bb advert A5 130611.indd 1 04/08/2011 16:42
Guinea Pig Magazine12
The Stories of Bertie the Guinea Pig have been produced as read-along eBooks and are available within an app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch developed by The Story Mouse. The first tale, Bertie and the Big Squeak is absolutely free!
Bertie and Jennya big family of guinea pigs by then and she lived on for several months but we knew she missed him. We buried Bertie in the garden and when the time came, scattered Jenny’s ashes in with him. I planted a little rose bush, called ‘Little White Pet’ which grew on their spot in the garden. When we moved a few years ago it came with us and is flowering now in the gar-den of our Northumberland home.
Bertie and Jenny were real soul mates and it was lovely to be able to bring them back to life for my daugh-ter through my stories. My
illustrator Liz has done a fantastic job re-creating them on screen and because the stories are narrated, I’ve even managed to include my present day piggies squeak-ing, munching and rustling! I like to think Bertie and Jenny are proud of the little tales I’ve written about them. Of course in fiction anything is possible, so in the stories Bertie and Jenny get up to all sorts of wonder-ful adventures, she even finds her squeak! And in one of the tales they start their own little family. But there are plenty of real life antics in there too, from all my beautiful, amazing, guinea pigs.
Next issue, we meet one of Helen’s other guinea pigs, Jenny’s friend Sophie – the guinea pig with a talent for opening doors!
Free to download!For more information on the Bertie stories, visit http://www.thestorymouse.com or follow Helen on Twitter @helenjaitken.
All app images Liz Lewis. All photos Helen J Aitken© ©
The Stories of Bertie the Guinea Pig have been produced as read-along eBooks and are available within an app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch developed by The Story Mouse. The first tale, Bertie and the Big Squeak is absolutely free!
Bertie and Jennya big family of guinea pigs by then and she lived on for several months but we knew she missed him. We buried Bertie in the garden and when the time came, scattered Jenny’s ashes in with him. I planted a little rose bush, called ‘Little White Pet’ which grew on their spot in the garden. When we moved a few years ago it came with us and is flowering now in the gar-den of our Northumberland home.
Bertie and Jenny were real soul mates and it was lovely to be able to bring them back to life for my daugh-ter through my stories. My
illustrator Liz has done a fantastic job re-creating them on screen and because the stories are narrated, I’ve even managed to include my present day piggies squeak-ing, munching and rustling! I like to think Bertie and Jenny are proud of the little tales I’ve written about them. Of course in fiction anything is possible, so in the stories Bertie and Jenny get up to all sorts of wonder-ful adventures, she even finds her squeak! And in one of the tales they start their own little family. But there are plenty of real life antics in there too, from all my beautiful, amazing, guinea pigs.
Next issue, we meet one of Helen’s other guinea pigs, Jenny’s friend Sophie – the guinea pig with a talent for opening doors!
Free to download!For more information on the Bertie stories, visit http://www.thestorymouse.com or follow Helen on Twitter @helenjaitken.
All app images Liz Lewis. All photos Helen J Aitken© ©
Simply follow the link on our website at www.guineapigmagazine.com
Ask the EXPERTS
Send your questions and problems (and any pictures you have) to [email protected]
We will pass your question on to our experts and contact you back as soon as they have any advice or solutions for you.
If you've never had guinea pigs before I would recommend a pair of females to begin with as they don't have the same territorial streak as boars tend to, and the chance that they'll get along fine without hiccups is much higher. Having said that, I do know someone who adopted two brothers as her first guinea pigs and they lived happily together until they died. In fact, I think she's on to her fourth pair of brothers now! Therefore, a pair of brothers who have been together since birth is also a relatively reliable option for your first pig keeping experience as in theory they should have some sort of pecking order already established. No matter the gender, and no matter if they are spayed/neutered or natural, there is always some "humping" as part of the normal dominance routine. It might look strange or scary at first but it's a very normal part of being a guinea pig, so don't worry too much! As for spaying a female, it's highly
recommended that you don't do this as the procedure is very invasive and should only need to be performed as part of essential and/or urgent medical treatment. There is no requirement for sows to have pups and they can live a very happy, healthy life having never given birth to a litter. From my point of view there aren't really any pros or cons for either gender that I would call a deal breaker. The most important thing to bear in mind is that boars can be territorial and unless they've grown up together or have been carefully paired by an expert (and even in these instances they can get their handbags out and bash each other sometimes!) putting boars together can be tricky. Not impossible I must stress, but tricky for a beginner. So as I men-tioned above, I would recommend you take on a pair of females or a pair of brothers. Good luck and I hope your first experience of our wonderful furry friends is a good one!
KATE SAYS
Ask the EXPERTS
Send your questions and problems (and any pictures you have) to [email protected]
We will pass your question on to our experts and contact you back as soon as they have any advice or solutions for you.
URGENT PROBLEMS SHOULD ALWAYS BE SEEN BY YOUR VET
LauraGuinea Pig Helpline
LizDoncaster Cavy Club
Lesley Vet Nurse & Rodentologist
KateRodents With Attitude
LAURA SAYS
For a complete newbie to guinea pigs I would consider a pair of young girls, or an established neutered male and female couple. In terms of dominance behaviours, which includes the mounting behaviour you mention, this can occur between sows, and persistent chasing/mount-ing that suddenly develops within a 24 hour period then stops can also indicate that one or more of the girls are in oestrus (“heat”/”season”). I personally do not recommend spay-ing sows as a preventative measure, as it is invasive surgery and not something all vets can safely do, and breeding is not advisable for any-one new to piggies. Spaying would prevent potential problems such as ovarian cysts and pyometra, but the risks significantly outweigh the benefits; ovarian cysts are usually easily treated (without the need for surgery) and pyometra is a relatively uncommon problem.
Please can you help me decide? I am wanting to get a pair of guinea pigs. I’m not sure whether to get boys or girls? Would a pair of intact females try to hump each other in the same way that males do, or do they tend to get on better together? And should females be either bred from or spayed-in the same way that cats should-to avoid conditions such as pyometra later on in life? What are the pro’s and con’s for males and females?Thank you.Julie, Brighton, by email
Firstly, to answer the male x female dilemma - I think its all down to a personal choice. I personally prefer boars, they tend to grow larger, have better characters and be more loving, whereas sows can often be a bit more temperamental, but then again there are pigs that typically buck the trend. Females will hump each other when in season, but again it depends on the
LIZ SAYS
Boys or Girls?
female, some of mine do, others don't.As for females being spayed - for me it’s a BIG no no. They don't get pyometra (womb infections) like dogs do, it is a very invasive operation and can often go wrong because of the size of the pig being operated on. My advice to you would be to go for a well established pair, and not babies.
That way the characters will be known, the hierarchy
will be well estab-lished, then there
would be less chance of falling out.
Maggie
www.guineapigmagazine.com 13
